Systems for generating configuration data are known in the art. For example, the Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP) allows data relating to each node in a network to be generated and stored in a top-down hierarchical structure, such that the location of a node in the network can be determined based on one or more parent nodes. For example, the LDAP generates node location data in the format parent1/parent2/node, where parent1 and parent2 are also nodes that have a hierarchical location in the network that is “above” the node.
While LDAP and other network node data structuring systems allow nodes to be located relative to other nodes, they do not provide additional information about a node that is required in order to perform certain functions, such as to configure software for operation on the node. For example, a node may require access to a printer, but the printer that is physically located near the node cannot be determined without viewing a map having associated printer identification data. Likewise, the user of a node may require access to certain applications or files based on the user's function within the organization, but users having many different function may be located in the same location relative to a given parent node. This node-specific data must be determined for each user, and often requires an operator to be physically present in order to install software applications.